All that is necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing. -- Edmund Burke

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Good News: Shia tribesmen helping US against Mahdi Army

We've known for a few months now that Sunni tribal leaders were turning against Al Qaeda; but now it appears that Shia tribal leaders are helping go after Al Sadr's Mahdi Army. This is tremendous news. Via Bill Roggio:

Operation Phantom Thunder and the Baghdad Security Plan continue to place pressure on al Qaeda in Iraq, allied Sunni insurgent groups, the Mahdi Army and the Iranian-backed Special Group. In Baghdad, junior al Qaeda in Iraq operatives are reportedly cooperating with Coalition forces and a series of car bombs hit a Shia area of the capital. In the Belts, U.S. and Iraqi forces maintain aggressive operations against al Qaeda and insurgent cells as both Sunni and Shia tribal leaders in and around Taji have banded together to fight the Mahdi Army and al Qaeda. Meanwhile, the U.S. captured two more members of the Special Groups and have indicated that Iran is now smuggling Chinese made weapons into Iraq.